Josh's3DPrinting

This was a very interesting course, a lot of different things I wasn’t expecting, but a good challenge. I would say that as a designer I have learned to be a bit more thorough, especially after seeing how specific you need to be to make sure that a print comes out right. I am a little more patient than I came in to the course with, I normally couldn’t sit through a print but I have learned a bit more self control. 3d printing also taught me to look at things from every angle (both literally and metaphorically). The first time I did a design that consisted of more than one component, the struggle to make sure that everything was touching, and that is was touching in the right place was rough. I wasn’t entirely sure how to get everything to go my way, but then a simple shift of perspective would reveal the answer. This has translated into my graphic freelancing, as through the semester I have acquired clients that have brought rather multifaceted problems to me and I have to solve them anyways. One client in particular was having me work on a logo, and after a few iterations, he became frustrated and wondered if we would find a viable solution. A few days later, I attacked the problem from a different vantage point, allowing me to produce a desired logo. It’s the same concept from 3d design. Challenges I have faced with the program are many. Most of the time the reason my designs did not come out as planned is because I had a hard time visualizing how to create a shape. Just like a sphere is a D followed around a circular perimeter, many other shapes are formed in that same add/subtract method. My mind had a hard time rendering the base shapes, so I would always have to draw everything out just to see what I was doing. There was actually a lot of sketching out because I wasn’t entirely sure how some things would even be attempted. If I could give myself a piece of advice from August, it would be to prepare for the entrepreneurship side of this course more. I was overwhelmed by the amount of work I had to do in that regard, and if I had known that aspect of the class was going to be so pivotal, I would have prepared differently.

When initially embarking on this quest I didn’t really know what to expect. But I went into it with an open mind, hoping to learn something from the process. I not only created a toy, but I delved deeper to see what exactly goes on to make that process happen. In this task I believe that I achieved a sense of workmanship and perseverance, as well as having a bit of fun along the way! Toys, while overlooked at times, are an important part of society. The toys we play we shape beloved childhood memories, and they also sculpt who we are as people. When I think back to some of my favorite toys, I can remember every little detail about them, from the expression on their faces, to the little nicks they had from being in the possession of an 8 year old. These toys not only helped me to have fun, but they also encouraged me to be creative and to think outside of the box. So what if the Lego toys didn’t come with the Batman toys? They could still have an adventure together. This ability to amalgamate different aspects of art and design is to what I attribute my style today. None of it would have been possible if I was not allowed to think freely, and toys were just a vessel with which to that. I think that in looking at the way that toys are made, I was able to see that it is something that is interesting, but not something that I would want to pursue. It takes a great deal of patience, which I am not currently in possession of, and a lot of trial and error. To see what works and what doesn’t, and learning where it is necessary to compromise your vision for practicality. 3d printing in toy making is a big deal because I think the ability to prototype yourself instead of having a 3rd party do it creates an avenue of unprecedented control for the toy designer.

Last time on A TOY MAKER’S JOURNEY: I finally finished my design and printed it, only to find that it was error laden. After making some design changes, I went to have the final product printed.

Before we start, I should introduce you to…*drumroll* THE ACTIONROBOTMAN mkII!

http://postimg.org/image/epiu72r9j/

I took out the podium that I had him resting on and replaced it with a set of legs! With this design in code, I went to have it printed. ANOTHER 2 hours later, it was done! And boy, were there a lot of supports. I would even guess that there were more supports than actual design. I would also like to take this opportunity to speak about removing supports. I don’t know how Mohamed has been doing it with relative ease all semester, because I took and X-Acto knife, a regular knife, and two different kinds of bird beak pliers to get most of it off. That’s right most of it. I had pictures but I have apparently surpassed my limit and my phone does not want to send them to my computer so they can be linked. In lieu of that, I will be explicit in detail. The ridged, rough material was so difficult to break off because it seemed to be affixed quite sturdily to the piece itself. I had to rip, tear, stab, cut, slice, and otherwise pummel the supports so that they would remove themselves. After a hour and a stab wound, I was able to get 90% of the supports off. This however, was not without compromise. I lost both an arm and shoulder unit from ActionRobotMan. Even though I have successfully made a toy and understand the process, I know that making toys is not for me.

This is my formal retirement from traveling toy production.

fin.

A TOY MAKER’S JOURNEY

Directed by: Joshua Galbraith

Written by: Joshua Galbraith

Starring: Joshua Galbraith

Special Assistant to Mr. Galbraith: Joshua Galbraith

Special Effects: Joshua Galbraith

Special Thanks: Joshua Galbraith

Soundtrack by: Joshua Galbraith and the Joshettes

*NO HANDS WERE STABBED IN THE MAKING OF THIS BLOG*

Last time on A TOY MAKER’S JOURNEY: I did battle with SketchUp Make 2015 and came up with an innovative robot toy. Now to have it printed!

I arrived at the 3d printing laboratory early enough to get this done! After consulting with Mohamed, we went ahead and printed ActionRobotMan.

2 HOURS LATER

I come to find my ActionRobotMan was all messed up! There was a printer error.

Alas, the test continues, but I swore that I would not stop. I made some slight changes to the design and had it printed again. Will it print successfully? Find out on the stirring conclusion of A TOY MAKER’S JOURNEY!

Last time on A Toy Maker’s Journey: I traveled to the distant lands of New York’s Lower East Side. I found out that 3d printing would not be the best way to mass produce a toy. I found the skill and courage to being making my design. I met a guy named Mike.

Now armed with all the knowledge that I needed, I booted up SketchUp to make this darn thing. That’s right, straight to SketchUp, no ideation, no sketches, straight off the top free styling up in here. This is mostly because I knew exactly what I wanted to make. And so it began. I started with a few cubes, and upon building those cubes I begin to flesh out a robot. Why a robot? WHY NOT A ROBOT, ROBOTS ARE AWESOME. Anyways, I ran into some problems when making the head of the robot, mostly because I had used a bunch of cubes and wanted to spice it up a little. However, my sworn nemesis Follow Me tool had other ideas. After about 3 mins of figuring out why the Follow Me tool wouldn’t make a solid sphere (I wasn’t following it all the way through) I defeated the fiend in pitched combat. After the initial design was done, I decided to throw on some accoutrements. A jetpack, because robot=jetpack. I’m actually upset they don’t sell printers with jetpacks. Maybe HP fears the printer robot apocalypse. Totally rational. Anyways, the bastard cousin of the sphere, the dome, refused to lend itself to my design. As such, I had to jam a sphere into the cylinder I had created to make a dome capped jetpack. It wasn’t easy, but here is ActionRobotMan mkI!

http://postimg.org/image/5b91ps2wx/

Now that I’ve done that, time to visit a friend to see this thing actually get printed!

Next time on A TOY MAKER’S JOURNEY: THE TEST CONTINUES

Before we begin this chapter, a little recap. I previously stated my intent to become a traveling toy maker, and by using a series of computers and servers connected to one another, (colloquially referred to as “The Internet”) I began to amass knowledge for this undertaking. Last time I spoke of an idea I had. My idea: I figured that now that I had some book smarts, it would behove me to find the help of someone who actually knew about how to make a toy.

To this end, I traveled to New York City’s Lower East Side, to reach the iMakr store (pictured below). The iMakr New York store holds the distinction of being the second largest 3d printing store in the known contiguous universe, behind the iMakr London store.

iMakr NY

Inside the store they had an assortment of 3d printed knicknacks, ranging from toys, to shoes, and even a model of Star Lord’s helmet. They also carried a bevy of 3d printers, each humming away at a separate task. While all this was nice, this was not what I came for. I came for counsel. Finding a man sitting at the lone table, I approached him with inquiries about toy making via 3d printing. Mike,(whose last name I forgot to find out) told me a few things about making toys with 3d printing. First, he told me that in theory, you would only use 3d printing to prototype. When I inquired as to why this was, he informed me that it simply was not efficient. As it turns out, the amount of time to make a 3d printed model of something that will be made from low grade plastic anyways would be better served as an injection mold. You would send over the master print to a factory and they would create a mold that would be mass-produced. This however, does not mean that there is no way to make a 3d printed toy. Enter Modio.

The picture to the left is a display on a tablet that shows Modio, a toy customization app for children. Since most kids don’t have the technical prowess to design a functional toy, Modio gives them a variety of pre-made components that they can mix, match, and customize to create their own toys. The picture on the right is pieces of a Modio toy that for whatever reason were left behind.

Mike also told me about a program called 123dcatch, which allows the user to scan objects into a 3d model using their phones. Below are some pictures of 3d printed sculptures or “high class toys” using that technology.

While slightly taken aback by the process of making a toy, I know had all the knowledge I needed. I would go home and begin designing my toy! I have the skills and the internet connection vital in making this toy a success.

Next time on A TOY MAKER’S JOURNEY: FIGHTING THE FIRST BATTLE

Hello! I have recently decided to become a traveling toymaker. As it stands, I have absolutely NO idea how to make a toy, or even anything resembling a toy. Actually, dear reader, I have told my first lie. When I was but a small-ling, I took a bunch of aluminum foil and created a shoddy toy. It fell apart in seconds. I also received disciplinary action from both parental units, as they had to go out and procure more aluminum foil. But I digress. To begin my journey I will use the utility commonly referred to as “The Internet” to compile knowledge about this endeavor.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Designing-Hopping-Animal-and-Comic-Book-Character-/

This tutorial teaches one how to make a hopping toy. I find this both unentertaining and insipid. To the next tutorial!

…A little difficult, but this has given me an idea! What is that idea? You’ll find out in PART 2!

Next time on A TOY MAKER’S JOURNEY: FINDING A LITTLE HELP

For my specific field of interest I chose toy manufacturing. To show that I have learned how to make a toy, I will take the following steps.

1) Google the design of toys and their manufacturing process

2) Interview people who can already do this, and with this information, gather supplies and knowledge

3) Practice making toy designs using the information I have compiled; prototype

4) Take prototype to be printed

5)Mess up/Learn from mistakes

6)Create second prototype using lesson learned from previous step

7)MAKE TOY

For Step 1, I will use Google to research different process as well as Youtube to find out more about toy manufacturing.

For Step 2, I will use the Maker MeetUp service to find individuals whose minds I can probe about the subject

For Steps 3 and 6, I will use SketchUp to make my initial designs

For Step 4, I will either use the printers here or at the iMakr store in the LES

In high school, there was a crazy over a clothing line named Kid Robot. Ironically, the clothes had become the most popular, but that was not Kid Robot’s initial claim to fame. They came up in the market of selling vinyl toys, and had innovated a number of DIY model toys that then were bought and customized by other artists, creating a collaboration of sorts. They had all kinds of contests and designs, and it didn’t matter what your skill level was, you could always have fun painting up their toys.

In the Fabricated book, there is a lot of talk about the disruptive nature of 3d printing. I believe that it can have a great positive effect if people were able to print out their own vinyl toys, which wouldn’t have to be made out of vinyl anymore. It would be made out of whatever they could get their hands on, and that could produce some really cool results. 3d printing is an obvious disruptor in this field because with art being such a subjective craft, there is no one to say this toy is “good” or “bad”. The companies that still want to be involved in the industry would have to adapt to the rapidly changing landscape by taking extra steps to make sure their patented designs are not being duplicated by anyone who has a printer and an internet connection. It would also allow for extreme customization and many new businesses to emerge, as well as opening up a brand new platform for artists to display their work to the world. While delving into this subject, I would like to learn what the limits are in printing 3d toys. For example, what is the tiniest I could print to achieve the maximum articulation? How would it negatively affect the toy industry if people (namely adults) were able to make their own toys for either themselves or their children? How would it positively affect the market? The video that I found on the production of the vinyl toy best illustrates how it will be disrupted because many of the steps taken in the video will be replaced with the one 3d printer.

I want to explore the production of toys using 3d printing because I am a kid at heart, and I believe that creating art is a under appreciated way to stimulate the mind. I also have a soft spot for nostalgia, and as stated in the first paragraph, the vinyl toy business and it’s connection to my high school days is near and dear to my heart.

Links to sources:

http://makezine.com/2014/02/19/designing-a-vinyl-toy-with-joe-ledbetter/

http://forums.kidrobot.com/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=153129

http://www.makerbot.com/blog/tag/toys/

http://www.cluttermagazine.com/news/2011/10/imodela-3d-printer-makes-toys-cheap

This course has been very rewarding in terms of both challenges and the payoffs to those challenges. Allow me to expound. When I first opened up SketchUp Make, I was incredibly intimidated. I had the same feeling as when I first opened up Adobe Illustrator six years ago. The tools looked like they didn’t do anything, and upon my initial probing I couldn’t get anything to work. I figured this would be a rough semester spent looking up tutorials on how to perform the most basic of functions. However, when the software was being explained, I found that the learning curve was not as severe as I previously anticipated. The most challenging thing for me to make so far has been making the vase. On my first try, I was really happy just to get the Follow Me tool to cooperate. Then, when Mohammed gave me my print, much to my chagrin, the thing was not hollow. I had forgotten to hollow out my prime shape! Thankfully, this was an easy fix and the rest of the project went on without a hitch. I believe that my greatest strength is my ability to transcribe my ideas onto paper fairly well, that way, when the time comes to create in SketchUp, there is less time spent trying to figure out what we are going for and more time spent honing our final idea. This works well in concert with Adam’s conceptual abilities and I whole heartedly believe that is what makes us a potent pairing.